A Prophet's Origin Story

I love the origin stories of the great superhero films. They always fill me with wonder at how these ordinary people with flaws or powers discovered a purpose greater than themselves and navigated their way into a calling to help and serve countless others. 

Of course, the prophets of God helped and serve to this day not in imaginary entertainment but in real life. In Ezekiel 1 and 2, we have the "origin story" of this Biblical hero in a dark time of history. Having just encountered the Lord in the storm and riding on a sort of cosmic chariot, God now speaks:

Ezekiel 2:1–2 (ESV) And he said to me, “Son of man, stand on your feet, and I will speak with you.” 2 And as he spoke to me, the Spirit entered into me and set me on my feet, and I heard him speaking to me.

The summons to stand on one's feet calls to mind the commissioning of a great dignitary or leader of the nation. While prophets were often hated in their time, they are the dignitaries of world history. As Jeremiah was called to build and to plant, demolish, and tear down a nation stubbornly refusing to listen, so too, Ezekiel bears a likened responsibility:

Ezekiel 2:3–4 (ESV) And he said to me, “Son of man, I send you to the people of Israel, to nations of rebels, who have rebelled against me. They and their fathers have transgressed against me to this very day. 4 The descendants also are impudent and stubborn: I send you to them, and you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD.’

Prophets are called to speak to people who don't want to hear them. That's what makes them prophets. Think of it, every true prophet challenged the norms of their day and called people to a different lifestyle than they would prefer. Ezekiel must enter into the ring of this very calling. Now the next line is so powerful:

Ezekiel 2:5 (ESV) And whether they hear or refuse to hear (for they are a rebellious house) they will know that a prophet has been among them.

God is going to have a witness among His people. The prophet will speak, and the people's response will not annul the prophet's effectiveness or calling. They are to know God was not without a man to stand up for His Word. Just because people don't listen or respond does NOT mean the Word is not effective. We do not judge the truthfulness of the Word by the response of the people. Nor is God's calling on an individual validated by the people's response. Some of the great men of history were unheeded by their context. 

Ezekiel is warned to not regard their faces.

Ezekiel 2:6 (ESV) And you, son of man, be not afraid of them, nor be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns are with you and you sit on scorpions. Be not afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, for they are a rebellious house.

A true prophet is confident in the truth of God's Word in such a way that scorn on the face of those to whom he bears witness does not deter him. He is more sure of God's truth than man's approval. 

Ezekiel 2:8–9 (ESV) “But you, son of man, hear what I say to you. Be not rebellious like that rebellious house; open your mouth and eat what I give you.” 9 And when I looked, behold, a hand was stretched out to me, and behold, a scroll of a book was in it.

The prophet EATS God's God's Word. It is his very diet. It becomes part of his energy and metabolism in life. He is fueled by the truth. 

Ezekiel 2:10 (ESV) And he spread it before me. And it had writing on the front and on the back, and there were written on it words of lamentation and mourning and woe.

Finally, the prophet accepts the Word for what it often can be - bad news. It announces the sinful condition of the heart that the confidence of man might be shattered before the Lord, humbled in His presence, and open to God's solution - the only solution that saves.

This is a powerful origin story. Ezekiel would not be considered a hero in his time. But he acted like one. He revered the Lord, he spoke truth without needing approval, and he accepted the task of troubling the soul of men that they might be saved.